Mask and the Genius
by hummerhouse
Summary: Mask the pit bull has been rescued from death by Raphael, who brings her home to meet his family. Mask is the OC creation of Teratophelia. Used with the express permission of Mask's creator. One shot.


Mask and the Genius

Donatello was in the garage repairing a security camera from on top of a ladder when Raphael and his new pit bull dog Mask located him.

After giving a succinct account of how he'd come to acquire Mask, Raphael relayed the instructions from Master Splinter that Donatello should examine the animal. Donatello stared at Mask from his perch, the expression on his face completely neutral. Mask stared at the tall turtle with the exact same lack of expression.

"All right, meet me in my lab. I want to finish taping this off and I'll be right there," Don said.

Turning towards the elevator, Raph didn't worry that Mask would dart off; she was and had been practically glued to his leg ever since he'd brought her back to the lair.

The rough looking pair waited in Don's lab for almost ten minutes before the purple banded turtle arrived. He was carrying a bowl of water and a plastic bag. Setting the bag on his desk, he placed the bowl on the floor and Mask immediately drained it.

"Do you know anything about her?" Don asked as he knelt on the floor next to Mask and scratched her behind an ear.

Raph shrugged. "Other than what ya' can see for yourself, not much. I guess ya' can tell she looks like somebody used her for carving practice a few times."

Don was cupping her muzzle as he examined the scars on the dog's body. Her tail was wagging from side to side with such energy that her entire bottom was moving.

"These look like they were made by a long sword, maybe even a katana," Don said, his fingers following one of the scars. "I take it you haven't introduced her to Leo yet?"

Raph laughed shortly. "Nah. She didn't react too well ta Master Splinter, and with these scars I figured I'd better learn as much about her as I could before taking her ta meet Fearless."

"You'd better figure out a strategy for Mikey and Klunk while you're at it," Don commented mildly. "I'll have to get my hands on vaccines to immunize her against rabies and whatever else is recommended for dogs, but I can do a rough exam right now. Luckily, she's not exhibiting any signs of being rabid, so I guess you lucked out."

He was eyeing Raph's bandaged hand. Raph held it out and flexed it once, grinning as he did so.

"Yeah, she was thanking me for rescuing her," Raph said. "It took a few minutes for us to come to an understanding."

"Uh huh," Don said as he stood up and moved to collect some things from a drawer. "I'll clean and re-wrap that for you when I'm done with Mask. Original name, by the way."

"Bite me, Donny," Raph said in good humor, reaching down to pat Mask's shoulders.

"Oh, is it my turn?" Don countered with a grin.

The exam took about thirty minutes, and Mask showed her enthusiasm for Donatello throughout the entire ordeal. Raph watched in amazement as his new dog followed the genius' every command, even lying down so that he could inspect the area beneath her tail.

"She looks good," Donatello said finally, his hand once more holding her mouth. "A little malnourished, but that's easily remedied."

"So once ya' give her some shots, she's okay ta stay here?" Raph asked.

"As far as I'm concerned," Don answered. "She follows rudimentary commands and that leads me to believe she's had some training, but you'd better take a small precautionary measure until you can get her trained to your voice."

He pulled a coil of rope from a drawer and cut off a long piece. Taking an eyeball measurement of Mask's neck, Don quickly tied a bowline knot in one end of the rope and slipped the loop over her head.

Mask was snorting and snuffling at him the entire time, whining when he wasn't touching her. Don handed the loose end of the rope to Raph before stepping back.

"This will help you maintain some control until you can get a real collar and leash," Don said. "Pit bulls have very high muscle density, so you'd best get something thick and strong."

"Okay," Raph said a little absentmindedly.

Mask was pulling towards Don, her enthusiasm for the intelligent turtle obvious. Raphael was beginning to get a trifle jealous; she was his dog after all, Raph was the one who had saved her from certain annihilation.

Don was apparently oblivious to Mask's attentions. He was in full lecture mode and didn't notice that Mask had worked her way around behind him.

"They also have a very high tolerance to pain, but that doesn't mean they don't feel it. I guess the point I'm trying to make is that you need to keep a sharp eye on her for a while. Try not to let her run loose in the lair until you're sure she gets along with everyone," Don told him.

"Yeah, gotcha," Raph said, watching Mask wag her tail and make eyes at Don as she slipped back around in front of him.

"You'll have to come up with some sort of routine for allowing her to do her business," Don added. "She won't be sharing a cat box with Klunk I'm afraid."

Raph scratched his chin and made a face. "Yo' Donny. Did ya' put some kinda voodoo on my dog or what?" he asked finally.

"Huh?" Don looked puzzled. "What are you talking about?"

Raph pointed down at the dog. As soon as Don glanced down at her, Mask leaped up at his chest.

The rope that was tied around her neck was now also effectively tied around Donatello's legs and when Mask jumped, the rope snapped Don's knees together. Off balance, he toppled over with a loud shout.

Raphael burst out laughing as Mask began to lick at his brother's face.

"You got any idea why she's actin' like that?" Raph said when he calmed down a little.

Don grinned sheepishly and opened his hand. In his palm lay several small pieces of Canadian bacon, which Mask immediately pounced on.

"It's a training technique," he explained, working to free his legs while Mask jumped on him, anxiously searching for more treats. "I thought it would help keep her calm while I examined her."

"Shell, I learned something else about pit bulls today," Raph said, reaching down and grabbing onto Don's bicep to help him stand.

"What's that?" Don asked, trying to fend off Mask's continued attentions.

"They're not only strong, but they're smarter than your average genius," Raph told him.


End file.
